Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1887-02-04

"Ye're ter do nothn', ony stay in the house
ez close cz We kin, an wait tell the chance
comes ter use We. Hit may he tcr-morrer, an
hit maynt be fur some days These army
moves are monty unsartin. Aunt Debby II
take kecr on ye, an yen not be in mite o
danger"
But we'll So" YOU frequentlyp
"Ez often ~ kin arrange hit. I'm actin
ez orderly an messenger bout headquarters,
but I'll come ter ye whenever I kin git
chance, an keep We posted
This was Friday night. All day Saturday,
IA long as the light lasted, Rachel stood at the
window and watched with sinking heart the
steady inflow of the Confedclates from the
north. That night she and Aunt Debby
waited till midnight for Former, but he did
not come. All day Sunday she stood at her
post and watched the undated pouring in on
the Nashville pike. Fortncr did not come
that night She was dowcast but no shade
disturbed the serenity of Aunt Dcbby's sweet
hymning. SO it was again ON Monday and
Tuesday The continually swarmng multi
tubes weighed down her spirits like nib
stone. She seemed to be encompassed by
millions of armed enemies They appeared
more plentiful than the trees, or the rocks, or
the leaves even. They filled the streets of the
little town until it seemed impossible for
another one TO find standing room. Their
cavalry blackened the faces of the long
ranges of hills. Their artillery and wagons
strcnmcd along the roads in n never ending
train Their camp fires lighted up the coun-
try at night for miles in all directions
just at dusk Tuesday night Fortner came
in and was warmly welcomed.
There are such countless hosts of the Con-
ipIpIutpS Rachel s.Ii n uftp ba fret
greetings were over, that quite despair of
our men being able to do anything with
them. 1t seems impossible that there can he
gathered together anywhere else in the world
a. many men as they have
81 dont wonder We think so, but ef ye'd
been whar ! wuz to-day yed think tibet all
the world wuz marchin' round in blue uni
forms Over heah hit seems eZ eff all the ce-
dars on the hills had suddintly turned into
| Confederate soldiers. Three miles from heab
| the huccoatS are swarmin' thickern bees il
a field q huckwheat.n
"Thrcc miles from here Is our army
within three miles of herel"
"Hit sartinly is, an the Lord-awfullest
| crowd o. mon an guns an bosses that ever
tromped down the grass o this ere ailth.
| Why, hit jest dazed my eyes ter look at en-.
| y
furthercst line q camp fires way on yander
hill! Well, themS Union. IF We could sec
| fur enuf ye'd sec they're bout five miles long,
an they look purtier'n the stars in heaven"
But If they are SO close the battle will be-
| gin Immediately, will it not"
Hit amt likely ter be put Off very long,
but thnrs no tellin' whatll happen in war, or
when
| when is nv time to comep
"Thct's what I've come fur ter tell We. IF
were aSwnc ter be of sarvice ter the guv'-
! ment, we must do hit tonight, fur most like
| ly the battlell begin in the mornin Hits
not Jest the way intended ter make use Of
yc, but hit can't be helped now. hev in
| formation tibet must reach Gineral Rosen-
Grams afore dayhreak. The vict'ry may de-
pend on hit. Ter make sure all Oh us must
start with hit, fur gittin through the lines is
now monty dangersome, am somebody
mehbe several-is bound to git cotcht, mebbe
wuss. The men | expected ter help me ar,
al gone l haint nobody now but We an
Aunt Debby. Dye dar and try an make yen
way through the lines tonight"
Rachel thought a minute upon the dread
full possibilities of the venture, and then
replied firmly:
YES dare. l will try anything that the
resi- of You will attempt"
"Good. ! knowed ye'd talk .hct-u- way.
! Now must waste no time IN Cittin
started, fur God only knows what diflikltio>
we'll meet on the way an Roscncrans can't
hev the Information emmy too soon. EV'ry
minute hits KEEP away from hinll cost many
vulnerable hves-mebbe help defeat the
army"
"rell me quickly, then, what I must do,
| | M irl. in I'M arta l-in
"Wrll, hcah's plan of the position at sun
down of the Confederates. Hits drawcd ont
moughty roughly, but hit'll show jest whal
they all are, an about the number there is at
each place. Hit begins on the right which is
south of Stone river with Brcckmridge
men; then across the river is Withers. an
Chcathan, an Ceburne, with McCown'>
division on the left, an Wharton's cavalry
Oh the hank. But the thing o most import
ance is tibet all day long they've been movin
men round ter Their left, ter fall on our right
| an crush hit. They're hid in the cedar
thickets over thar, an they'll come out to
morrow molmn like a million yelln deN lis
an try to sweep our right wing often the
| face o the arth. Dye understand what I've
tole yer
ayes. Breckenridge's division is ON then
right and south of Stone river. Withcrs
Cheatham ami Cleburne come next, on the
north of the river with McCown's division
and Whartons cavalry on the left, as shown
in the sketch, ana they are moving heavy
force, around to their left, with the evident
intention of falling overwhelmingly ON our
right early in the morning
"Ihet's hit. Thets hit. But lay all the
stress We kin on the movn' around ter ther
left. Thnr's mo mischief in tibet than all the
rest. Say tibet thar's 20,00omen gwine round
thar this AFTERNOON an evenm'. Say tibet
thar's the biggest thundercoud o danger that
emmy one ever seed. Say hit over an over,
tell everybody understands hit an gifts ready
ter meet hit. Tell hit till we've made ev'ry
one on EN- understand tibet thar cant be no
mistake about hit, an they must look out fur
| heols o trouble on ther right Tell hit ez We
never tole anything atore in Yer life Tell hit
ez yed pray God Almighty fur the life o the
| one tibet We love better than all the world be
side An gt thar ter tell hit-git thru the
Confederate hnes-ef ye love yer God an yer